Magic Wands, Swords, and Band-Aids

My boys were fairly young when the Harry Potter craze hit. My oldest wanted to read every book as soon as it came out. As a mom/teacher, I was thrilled that my sons wanted to read. But, then came the criticism. As a Christian mom I struggled with the fact that I was being condemned for even allowing the books in my house. Let me just say right here, that this is not a pro or con for the Potter series. This is about how we, as parents, handled it. I read the first book. I did not come away thinking it was witchcraft or sorcery training. It was fantasy fiction. To me it was entertaining and a battle of good over evil. We had conversations with our boys. They viewed it just like us. Just a fun read. And yes, we watched the movies too and liked them. There was even one Baptist church in town that held a “conference” to expound on the evils of the books. I thought hooey! I say all of this to point out that it is all about the preconception and background going in before you read.

When I was a kid, we played Cops and Robbers and Cowboys and Indians. I even played Superman or Wonder Woman and flew off the front porch roof. It wasn’t THAT high. And the sword fights we had with tobacco sticks and tree limbs were epoch. I won’t even tell you the outcomes of our dirt-clod fights. We read “The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe” and watched “The Wizard of Oz”. It did not scar me for life. It did not prep me for a life of satan-nistic worship or send me in search of a gang to join. When things got too battle-weary, mama brought out the band-aids, some cups, and a jug of Kool-Aid. Lime green was our favorite. Then all would be right with the world. My grand daughters love playing princess and waving their magic wands. Does it make things appear or disappear? Of course not, but they sure have fun playing it.

Why do I tell you all of this? If you have read any of “The Bible”, then you know it is filled with amazing events like; Moses parting the Red Sea, Miracles of the blind being able to see and the lame being able to walk, swine becoming possessed and throwing themselves into the sea, a king becoming a donkey and eating grass and then becoming a man again. Water being turned to wine in a short amount of time or fish nets that were empty becoming so full in an instant that the boat threatened to sink, are just a few of the astonishing events documented in” The Bible”. These things are no less fantastical than what we read in some modern-day books. The difference is The Bible is NOT Fiction and has withstood the test of time. Am I implying that all fantasy or fiction is appropriate for our children? ABSOLUTELY NOT! As the parent/grandparent, it is our responsibility to discern, discuss, and teach the difference between Truth and entertainment to our children. If they know The Truth from God’s Word then the entertainment will be just that, entertainment. But, we must always put God’s Word first and foremost to our eyes and in our minds, then we will know the difference between Truth and Fantasy.

Dear Heavenly Father, I thank you for all the blessings you pour out daily. Thank you for the gifts and talents you have given each of us. Thank you Lord for your Word that guides us in all that we think, say, and do. Please help each of us to be discerning with out being blinded by all that is placed before us. Amen.